Myth, Rituals and Mystics

Question One 

Islamic piety movement can be considered as a broader Islamic revival, which began to spread through the Muslim world in the 1970s. This movement has its roots in the history of women scholars within the Islam. Additionally, it is a modern movement with exceptional numbers of women included in the Islamic revival movement. The impact of this movement is evident as there is an increase in the number of women wearing hijab. Between the 1980s and 1990s, a new word was formulated “ mutadayyinat ” which refers to religious women to help explain the growing nature of piety movement among the women (Mahmood, 2011) . One of the practices promoted by the Islamic piety movement is education among the women. Literacy of women is increasing worldwide because of teaching Islamic through modern technology such as internet, satellite, radio, TV among others. This has played a significant role in the growth of Islamic piety movement in which women are part of it. For that reason, there are women who are preachers, and they are self-educated (Shahin, 2018) . Religious institutions in the Muslim world are also making the movement to be practiced by offering training to women. Islamic piety movement is being supported by some institutions such as Al-Azhar University in Cairo, which began training women preachers in 1999 (Binzel & Carvalho, 2017) . 

Muslim women have formulated various strategies to enable them to survive in a place where they face social restrictions for piety movements. For example, Muslim women have used religious occasion in their homes such as recitative prayer or Qur’anic recitations as a way of gaining blessing. Religious practices assisted in providing support for the continuation and sustenance of the Islamic piety movement (Mahmood, 2011) . Intensive mobilization among women began where they organized for religious lessons in their homes to help them learn Qur’an. Additionally, they acquired religious materials to assist them in this Islamic piety movement (Binzel & Carvalho, 2017) . Special gatherings and homes gained popularity as places where women are encouraged to ensure that their behavior and clothing fit with what Islam teaches. Islamic piety movement is being encouraged in different forums such as birthday party where young women attending are urged to wear hijab. Islamic piety movement also promoted the idea of inclusion of women in the religious teaching (Mahmood, 2011) . Within the Middle East countries, women began attending religious services into the mosques. Additionally, they also required being involved in public religious teaching such as television. Muslim women were being equipped so that they can teach others on a different aspect of life such as being a good Muslim, wedding, and birth (Shahin, 2018) . 

Question Two 

Islamic piety movement can be considered to have met the definition of “fundamentalist” provided in the textbook. Islamic fundamentalism is a wider term that refers to a theological approach of certain groups within the Islam community who consider Qur’an as the accurate and inerrant word of God. The concept requires that all Muslim must adhere to the religious practices and moral codes of Islam (Moaddel & Talattof, 2016) . Hence, in the Islamic piety movement, women are empowered with Islamic teaching regarding their behavior and dress code. Fundamentalist provides a framework in which all the Muslims are required to observe such as following Islamic religious law. On the other hand, Islamic piety movement training women so that they are well informed of these laws that guide Muslims (Mahmood, 2011) . 

Fundamentalist Islamic movements are guided by doctrines, which are similar to those of Islamic piety movement. Islamic piety movement can be regarded as a way of searching Islamic authenticity in the age of the postmodern world. It is similar to the question being raised by the post-modernist on the authenticity of modernism and modernity (Moaddel & Talattof, 2016) . One question being addressed by fundamentalist is the contradictions of Islam, which exist in the Islamic world. Similarly, Islam piety movement also asks why women are not empowered to lead religious ceremonies among the Islam states (Moaddel & Talattof, 2016) . The movement is gaining momentum and women are being trained to be teachers in the mosque something that never happened in the past. When the fundamentalist ask why there are no Islamic states, the Islamic piety movements are eager to know why there are no female Muslim preachers (Mahmood, 2011) . 

Fundamentalist can be regarded as a concept, which focuses on the foundations, basic; elemental that is related to religious nature. Looking at the application of Islamic piety movement, they are also concentrating on empowering women with the basic principles of Muslim doctrines. These teaching will help women to take a position in mosques and even become teachers after mastering of these basic elements (Moaddel & Talattof, 2016) . This Islamic piety movement uses the Qur’an as their guiding book in matters to do with Islam. They are large groups with the focus of equipping women with the doctrines of Islam as one way of making this religion popular. In this regard, it can be viewed that Islamic piety movement can be considered to have met the definition of “fundamentalist” provided in the textbook. This is because the concepts, which are applied in both, are interrelated such as strict adherence to the laws of Islam (Moaddel & Talattof, 2016) . 

Question Three 

Edward defines orientalism as a corporate institution and a systematic discourse employed in dealing with the Orient (Binzel & Carvalho, 2017) . This concept helps to create a western style of thought and appears and a constructed discourse for obtaining, dominating and restructuring authority over the orient. The French and British initiated this concept as a cultural and colonial enterprise in the 18th century. Orientalism creates a systematic European discipline producing the orient imaginatively, sociologically, ideologically and politically (Mahmood, 2011) . This system works as an independent and autonomous discipline by accumulating knowledge and documents over the orient systematically. The process of development looked like a constructed one and a way of perception while orient did not appear as a free subject of the action and thought but as a subject of western representation and conception about the orient (Shahin, 2018) . 

Otherness 

There are some stereotypes, which are attributed to the Orientals such as otherness. Similarly, this concept of otherness is regarded as a threat that should be avoided at all cost. Some of the colonial novels, there are a set of negative attitudes and bunch of fixed clichés as associated with this idea of otherness (Shahin, 2018) . According to Edward suggested that the starting point for all the orientalist is by identifying these stereotypes. For example, the Arabs are depicted to be gullible which implies devoid of initiative and energy (Mahmood, 2011) . Additionally, the Orientals are considered as people who cannot walk on pavements or the roads. They have a disordered mind that fails to understand what the cleaver European comprehend immediately, that pavements and roads are made for walking. Similarly, the Orientals are branded as liars, and they are willing to oppose everything even that which is clear (Binzel & Carvalho, 2017) . 

Timeless 

In the orientalism, the orient exists as a timeless place, static, and that which is not able to change. Additionally, they are viewed as characters that have been cut off from the progress of western history. So they are seen as people who cannot develop without the western world. For example, a western who was traveling to oriental lands was not just in the space from one region to another location, but they were considered as people traveling back in time to an earlier world. Therefore, this was stereotypical which was attached to the people in the oriental lands (Mahmood, 2011) . 

Strange 

The nature of orient is not just different but is regarded as oddly unique, unusual, bizarre and fantastic. Additionally, if the accident can be seen as rational, familiar and sensible, the Orient was branded as abnormal, extraordinary and irrational. Therefore, strange was another stereotypical, which was being exercised against the orients. There was nothing good about them, and all they did was seen as strange (Shahin, 2018) . 

Question Four 

The women portrayed in “The Light in Her Eyes” do not fit the stereotypes of the Middle East such as otherness. This concept of otherness is based on the ideology that the people of the Middle East are not initiative, and they lack energy. According to my perception, the women in the Middle East have initiative as they collaborated to form Islamic piety movement (Shahin, 2018) . Coming up with such a movement require people with an open mind who can articulate their ideas clearly and form a coalition to help push for a common cause. Additionally, the women in the Middle East have the energy to form such an organization to help them to be involved in Islamic activities. Therefore, women in the Middle East should not be considered to fit the stereotypes associated with that region (Mahmood, 2011) . 

Thirdly, women in the Middle East do not fit in the stereotype of timelessness as indicated in the book. The women in this region are coming up with new ideas, which are likely to transform the Middle East. This implies the region is not static and there are possibilities to bring new change and implement them. When Islamic piety movement was formed, it was a new idea, which was fighting for the position of women within the religion of Islam. Such inclusion of women is not something that was being practiced within the Islamic religion (Mahmood, 2011) . Nevertheless, women came together and brought a change and women are now being taught and equipped with Islamic doctrines. Additionally, they are also becoming teachers, and they are allowed to go to the mosque. Therefore, women within the Middle East are not anyway associated with the stereotype of timelessness. Introducing Islamic piety movement in a region, which is perceived as staunch Muslim region, is a tremendous change (Shahin, 2018) . 

Finally, women from the Middle East region can be said that they conform or fit in the stereotype of strange as portrayed in “The Light in Her Eyes.” The idea that is being propagated by the Muslim women is strange. This is because this was not a practiced for most of the Muslim community. Hence, this concept of Islamic piety movement is an idea, which can be considered as strange, unusual, bizarre and fantastic. There are some parts of Middle East, which have not yet accept the idea of involving women in their activities as suggested by the Islamic piety movement. Therefore, about the concept of strange as a stereotype and the women in the Middle East fit in this idea (Mahmood, 2011) . 

References 

Binzel, C., & Carvalho, J. P. (2017). Education, social mobility and religious movements: The Islamic revival in Egypt. The Economic Journal , 127 (607), 2553-2580. 

Mahmood, S. (2011). Politics of piety: The Islamic revival and the feminist subject . Princeton University Press. 

Moaddel, M., & Talattof, K. (Eds.). (2016). Modernist and fundamentalist debates in Islam: a reader . Springer. 

Shahin, E. E. (2018). Political ascent: contemporary Islamic movements in North Africa . New York: Routledge.